1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a device for removing caps from empty bottles and, more specifically, to a device that removes bottle caps from water bottles so the water bottle can be cleaned and re-used.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is commonly known and practiced within the bottled water industry, and others, that detachable, plastic bottle caps are mounted on the neck of a variety of sizes and shapes of bottles. Such bottle caps seal the bottle and the contents inside prior to the installation of the bottle on a dispenser. In the water industry such use involves the inversion of the bottle and placement of it onto a drinking water dispensing system. In the past, a cap on the bottle would be removed prior to use through the use of an attached pull tab and a scoreline.
Recent developments in the water bottle/bottle cap industry include a cap which has a central tube section that is capable of receiving a specialized water dispensing probe from a water dispensing system. This tube section has an inner seal which prevents the water from escaping the bottle until such dispensing probe is inserted. With this type of arrangement, the bottle cap itself need not be removed prior to placement of the bottle onto a water dispensing system. Indeed, at no time during the bottle's use by a consumer does the bottle cap ever have to be removed. As a result, water bottles which are being returned with these types of bottle caps still securely affixed thereon are cleaner and can be more easily re-used.
Obviously, the presence of these attached bottle caps forces bottlers and recycling plants to perform an additional labor task before the corresponding bottles may be refilled. One way of addressing this problem is to employ additional laborers to peel and/or pry off the bottle caps in a manual fashion. Such a method, however can be both costly and inefficient, particularly in comparison to the highly automated methods of handling other tasks known within the bottling industry today. Accordingly, highly automated bottle cap removal systems have been developed for removing bottle caps from bottles moving along a conveyor-type system. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,826,409 discloses a bottle cap removing system which is easily adapted to a conveyor system of either 5-gallon or 3-gallon bottle movement within a bottling or recycling facility. This system automatically determines which, if any, bottles have attached bottle caps and automatically removes such bottle caps in an efficient and cost-effective manner.
While the system disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,826,409 has proven to be highly efficient and cost effective in high volume bottle recycling and refilling plants, there are certain small volume bottlers which do not wish to allocate their capital expenditures to highly automated cap removing systems. Ideally, the bottle cap removing needs of these small volume bottlers could be efficiently achieved by a cap removal system that allows the individuals who collect empty water bottles, such as truckers, to remove bottle caps at the point of collection.
In light of the additional costs associated with the process of removing bottle caps from bottles by hand at a bottle recycling facility, what is needed in this field of art is a bottle cap remover which can be easily and inexpensively adapted for use within a standard bottling plant, or within in a truck which is used to transport used water bottles.
The advantages of the instant invention described above with reference to the bottled water industry are also applicable to other industries involved in the distribution of liquids, such as edible oils and liquid chemicals, and may also have application in industries involved in the distribution of flowable powders.